405 Freeway Wilshire Blvd. Ramps Reopen Three Weeks Ahead Of Schedule

Friday, 31 Aug 2012, 5:47:00 AM

Brenton Garen

A rendering of what the 405 Freeway will look like at Wilshire Boulevard. Reconstruction of all eight ramps is expected to take more than one year.

Three weeks ahead of schedule, the 405 Freeway westbound Wilshire Boulevard on-ramp and the northbound off-ramp will re-open to traffic today.

The two ramp closures, popularly known as “Ramp Jam,” were originally scheduled for 90-day closures that officially began on June 22 with reopening originally scheduled for Sept. 22.

The six other Wilshire ramps will be closed consecutively, some two at a time, between 14 and 90 days over the next year.

However, the next ramp closures are not expected to start until November, and will likely be 14-day closures which may not be performed simultaneously. The closure schedule for the next ramps will be announced at a later date.

The Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority (Metro) and its contractor, Kiewit Infrastructure West announced the re-opening today in a statement.

All eight Wilshire freeway ramps must be torn down and rebuilt as part of the $1 billion I-405 Sepulveda Pass Improvements Project that is building a 10-mile carpool lane between the 10 and 101 Freeways.